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Intersil Unveils New Family of Higher Speed CD-R/RW Laser Drivers
EL622XC driver improves CD-R/RW drive speeds from 48X to 52X
| The manufacturer says . . . | ChipCenter's Paul O'Shea says . . . |
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Intersil Corporation, a world leader in the design and manufacture of high performance analog and wireless networking solutions, today unveiled a new family of new high speed laser driver ICs designed specifically to enable read (CD-R) and read/write (CD-R/W) speeds up to 52X in CD-R/W laser disk drives. Intersil's new EL622XC family of three- and four-channel laser drivers enables higher read/write speeds in existing CD-R/W drives while reducing component count and shortening data signal routing in more compact future designs. "The EL622XC family adds to Intersil's market-leading portfolio of CD and DVD recordable products and gives original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) a quick upgrade path to higher speed, higher performance CD-R and CD-R/W drives," said Stephen P. Sacarisen, director of strategic marketing for Intersil's Elantec Optical Storage Products. "The EL622XC family assures that we will maintain our performance leadership in the CD-R/RW drive market by offering new products that are pin-to-pin and functionally compatible with existing production designs, allowing customers fast time to market. These devices reduce component count, shorten signal routing and enable more compact optical pickup designs - particularly important attributes to PC OEMs who will continue to attach faster and faster CD-R/RW drives to their products." Intersil's new EL622XC family of Elantec laser drivers provides improved waveform fidelity, increased output current, lower power dissipation and reduced noise to enable higher speed CD-R/RW designs. Each device in the family includes an on-chip 600 MHz oscillator to allow frequency and amplitude control by use of external resistors to ground. The external resistors allow customers to accurately and independently set each amplifier transconductance by applying a voltage to the resistor without restriction on the voltage range, thus ensuring broad voltage DAC compatibility. Each device includes a disable feature for power-up protection and power savings. The EL622XC family is compliant with the industry-standard Orange Specification for CD-R and CD-R/W write strategy disc formats at speeds up to 52X. Three- and four-channel devices provide: - Controlled current to grounded laser diodes - On-chip 600 MHz oscillator allows output current modulation in any mode - Switching speed of less than 1 nanosecond rise/fall time - Single +5V supply ( 10%) - Disable feature for power-up protection and power savings - "Shrink-small" quarter size outline package (QSOP)
Intersil Corporation |
These products from Intersil are just a few of the many new products born out of the recent marriage to/acquisition of Elantec. It looks like it was a good move for Intersil because it gives them access to more than their analog and wireless market offerings. The union has opened the doors to the fast-growing markets of optical storage, power management and flat panel displays. The new family of laser drivers from Intersil offers manufacturers more speed for their read/write operations in the very competitive market for DVDs and CDs. Yet, the company didn't stop there. They made sure you get less for your money ý that is, less component count for less cost and less length to the data signal routing for a more compact optical pickup. Once again, less is more. No doubt PC manufacturers will appreciate these attributes as they try to differentiate themselves from the competition. Although there are four different products listed, neither the data sheets nor the press release offered the details that one might expect to find ý such as how they are different. That means you have to contact the company if you want more information, which could have been provided to save everyone some precious time. However, at the time of this review I could not get a response from the company. What can be discerned is the company's ensured broad compatibility for DAC voltage requirements by enabling the designer to set the transconductance of each amplifier with the use of external resistors. It allows a voltage to be applied to the resistor without restricting the voltage range. Each device also includes a disable feature for power-up protection and power savings. The device family, which includes the EL6221C, EL6224C, EL6226C and EL6227C, is available now in quarter size outline packages (QSOPs) and each device is priced at $2.50 in 10,000-unit quantities. Click here for information on optical storage devices and solutions.
Data Sheets
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